Junjo Ascendence
by sukistrawberry2468
Summary: Ryo is the star of Mitsuhashi's basketball team, while Kiyoshi is the most intellectually gifted student in his entire year. Will opposites attract? A new Junjo romance is just beginning. Rated M for sexual content.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello Readers! Welcome to a Fanfiction inspired from, in my opinion, the best Boy's Love manga/anime today, Junjo Romantica! I never get tired of this series. But I thought I wanted to try and stretch my O.C.'s this time around, so here you have it: a brand new couple joins the Pure Hearted universe! (well, in my story anyway). I've had a lot of fun creating these two new young men and I hope you will enjoy reading about them as well as the original cast. So without further ado, I present to you Junjo Ascendence. Hope you enjoy.**

**Junjo Ascendence**

**(Pure Hearted Ascent)**

Summary: Ryo is the star of Mitsuhashi University's basketball club, while Kiyoshi is the most intellectually gifted student in his entire class. Will opposites attract? A new Junjo romance is just beginning. Rated M for explicit content.

**Chapter One**

_Holding Misaki's face tenderly between his hands, Akihiko spoke in a voice barely above a whisper. "Don't ever leave me, Misaki. If you were not here beside me-"_

_ "That will never happen, Usagi-san." Misaki reached up to graze his lips against Akihiko's cheek. "I won't ever leave you, no matter what your family says or does to me."_

_ "Misaki…" Akihiko could bear it no longer. Scooping up Misaki in his arms, he held his lover tight against his chest and carried him up the stairs, while Misaki began to gently suck on the delicate skin of his neck…_

The alarm clock beside Kiyoshi's bed began to ring, jarring Kiyoshi from the Boy's Love novel he had clutched in his hands. Pushing the button down with two fingers, Kiyoshi decided in his mind for the one hundreth time that as soon as he got rich and famous enough, he would work at home so that he would never have to set his alarm clock again. In fact, he was going to throw it away. Or maybe he would invest in one of those alarm clocks that played harp music or bird sounds.

Longingly, he glanced at the cover of his book. He'd woken up a half hour early just to read a few more chapters of his newest acquisition, _Forbidden Romance_, and now it was already time to get ready for school. Kiyoshi knew he needed a shower – last night he'd come back so late from his job as a teacher's assistant that he hadn't been able to do much more than chow down on takeout, finish his homework, and roll out his futon before flopping down and falling asleep instantly.

He wondered if maybe he was taking on too much. Along with his job and classes, he was also part of a research club, and just for some extra cash he tutored on the side. Thank goodness he didn't have any athletic interest whatsoever, or it might not have been possible to fit it into his schedule. Kiyoshi had never been a very active person – he was small and thin, with delicate features and light skin from spending most of his time on the computer or inside reading and studying. He wore glasses, and more often than not had a few books tucked under his arm along with the ones stuffed in his backpack when he went to school.

Kiyoshi finally crawled out of bed, after reluctantly marking his place in _Forbidden Romance_. He had to admit, even though Akikawa Yayoi was writing for a female audience, Kiyoshi found the sexy Boy's Love books just as addicting. She was certainly his favorite Boy's Love author, and ever since learning that she took fan mail he'd been wondering if he should email her and tell her how much even he, a guy, enjoyed her books. Maybe he enjoyed them so much because, despite the overly-romantic prose and the sometimes unrealistic plot lines, it seemed as if she really knew what it was like to be in that kind of relationship. It was as if she knew the inner workings of the male mind on an intimate level, or as if she had seen first-hand the kind of relationships she wrote about in her books.

Kiyoshi wished he had some first-hand experience. But he'd never been on any sort of date before, male or female. He wasn't even sure at this point which he was attracted to. He had never been around people enough to know for sure. It was the price he had to pay for being both a natural introvert and a genius for his age.

In the shower, as he quickly globbed his hair up with shampoo, he wondered if attending Mitsuhashi University would really help him make more friends. Of course, he was secretly hoping for something even more special to happen…but for now he'd even be satisfied with finding someone he felt comfortable around. He had decided to attend Mitsuhashi because it had a solid academic program without the ridiculous cost of other, more snobbish schools. Mostly it was full of normal students who hadn't spent their whole lives immersed in aristocracy. Kiyoshi had determined that if he was ever going to learn how to make friends better and get out of his shell, he'd have to take a chance and step outside of his comfort zone by departing from the greater academic community. His parents hadn't approved, but in his heart he felt that he had made the right choice.

Now all he had to do was meet someone. Just one person would do. He could handle being a long way off from a soft, lovable BL romance. Right now what he wanted most was someone just to see him for something besides his brain. Maybe his personality. Or even his heart.

* * *

"Excuse me, Professor?"

Professor Hiroki Kamijo looked around, having been immersed in a thick, ancient text, equipped with his reading glasses. He saw his new student assistant, Kiyoshi Tsuzuki, standing in the doorway holding a stack of files.

"Finished already?" he asked incredulously. "Man, you sure are a hard worker! I have to say, your dedication is impressive!"

"Thanks, Professor." Kiyoshi entered the messy, cluttered office and placed the files on Hiroki's desk. He asked, "Is there anything else you'd like me to do today?"

Hiroki thought about it for a moment. To be honest, Kiyoshi was one of the hardest-working students he'd ever seen – second only to Nowaki, of course. The kid was a freshman, and already he was involved in the school's most elite research group, as well as taking up another job as a Japanese and English tutor. Hiroki gave him lots to do because Kiyoshi asked him to, but sometimes Hiroki wondered why Kiyoshi was so driven. Clearly with Kiyoshi's intelligence, he could have gone to a much more prestigious school than Mitsuhashi, and he still would have graduated at the top of his class. And Kiyoshi wasn't the type of kid to go to an average school just so that he could outshine everyone else.

"No, I think that's all I've got for you today," Hiroki decided. Then he asked, "Say, you have your tutoring next, don't you? Aren't you meeting a new student today?"

Kiyoshi nodded. "Yeah, I am. I think his name is…uh, Ryunosuke Mitsubishi, or something like that."

The name sounded familiar. Was Ryunosuke in one of Hiroki's classes?

"Oh, him!" The memory of delivering killing blows to a recent essay made it easy to remember. "Ryunosuke is in one of my classes! Haven't you heard of him? I think he's on some kind of rare sports scholarship for basketball."

Kiyoshi looked confused. "I didn't think our basketball program was that competitive. And Mitsuhashi isn't really renowned for any of its sports programs, is it?"

"Are you guys talkin' about the basketball kid?"

Both Kiyoshi and Hiroki jumped at the interruption. Hiroki bristled defensively.

"Miyagi!" he declared.

Yo Miyagi stood in the doorway, casually smoking what was probably his twentieth cigarette of the day and observing the student and teacher slyly. He and Hiroki were very comfortable with each other, despite the fact that Hiroki had the tendency to act abrasively toward him. Miyagi had long since understood that it was part of Hiroki's personality.

"Hmm…maybe this isn't something I should be walking in on," he said, sauntering into the office anyway. Hiroki made a derisive noise.

"Anyway, did you say you know about Ryunosuke?" he asked Miyagi.

Miyagi joined the two of them on the far side of the room, and blew out a stream of smoke while regarding the slender, dark-haired boy standing between them. He looked nothing like Miyagi's own lover, Shinobu, even though they were close to the same age. This kid didn't have Shinobu's stubborn face – in fact it seemed like he didn't have a contrary bone in his body. Hiroki had told Miyagi that he was a model student. But even besides that, Miyagi supposed the kid just looked really gentle and sincere. It made him a pleasant addition to their small Literature department office.

"Yeah, I heard about him from the President," he said in reference to Ryunosuke. "But this is top secret so you two keep quiet about it, okay?"

Hiroki rolled his eyes, but Kiyoshi nodded earnestly. Miyagi continued for Kiyoshi's benefit.

"Well, the truth is…the President is a serious basketball fan."

He waited to see if either of them would grasp the significance. When both continued to look confused Miyagi sighed and explained.

"So when he heard about Ryunosuke's incredible talent, he went out and made a deal with him – that Ryunosuke would be accepted into Mitsuhashi without having to take an entrance exam, and his entire tuition would be paid for by the school."

"What?" Kiyoshi gasped.

"That's against school policy," Hiroki said.

"In exchange, Ryunosuke had to join the basketball club and promise that he would get them into the national championships by his senior year. If he doesn't, he'll have to find a way to pay back the tuition." Miyagi took in the other's shocked expression with satisfaction.

Kiyoshi looked like the balance of the world had been completely unhinged. "But why didn't he have to take the entrance exam? Isn't that unfair to the other students?" he asked.

Miyagi chuckled. "Well, see, here's the thing, Kiyoshi…this basketball kid is known regionally for his talent on the court, but he was also known for having the worst grades in his entire class in high school. There's no chance he'd ever pass something as difficult as a college entrance exam. In other words," Miyagi concluded, "He's a complete idiot."

Kiyoshi looked horrified. His small, pale face was twisted up in an expression of terror. "The worst grades in his class?" he gasped. He gripped the edge of Hiroki's desk for support. "And I'm supposed to tutor him?"

"That's it. He's required to have a tutor for every subject." Miyagi paused and looked Kiyoshi up and down. "And you're doing double duty with two subjects. Are you sure you can handle it, kid?"

Kiyoshi looked like he was going to be sick. "Well…I can't back out of it now, not when I'm meeting him in an hour…but what if he's…I mean, he's probably really big and scary-looking since he's such a good basketball player-"

"He is." Hiroki nodded gravely, his arms crossed over his chest. "I have to admit, Ryunosuke turned in one of the worst essays I've ever had to grade. Sometimes I wasn't even sure if he was writing in Japanese! And yeah, he's big," he added to Kiyoshi, "Massive, really. And he usually sits in the back of the class and doesn't speak to anyone."

This news seemed to surprise Kiyoshi. "Doesn't speak to anyone? Wouldn't someone like him have a lot of friends?"

"You would think so." Miyagi was busy lighting up another cigarette. "But actually the kid's not very sociable. Personally, I think he's self conscious because he doesn't want anyone to find out he gets such lousy grades.

"So now you've got a big, scary basketball player to go teach!" Miyashi placed his hands on Kiyoshi's shoulders and steered the petrified boy toward the door. "_Bonzai_, Kiyoshi!" he said cheerfully. "If he tries to step on you, poke him in the eye with your pencil!"

As Kiyoshi wandered away anxiously, slinging his backpack over his shoulder, all he could think of to respond to Miyagi was, "But I'm probably too short to actually reach his eye…"

**I would very much appreciate your reviews/critiques/and encouragement! Thank you for reading!**

***~Suki~***


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own any original characters from Junjou Romantica, etc. However I do own my OCs and my writing. **

**Hey, readers! It's been a long time. Obviously writing Fanfiction is not my top priority, and I can't really promise anything at this point. But in any case, here is Chapter Two of Junjou Ascendence for your viewing pleasure. Heads up, it will get very steamy soon!**

Chapter Two

Kiyoshi headed toward the library quickly, fear rising in his chest. Ryunosuke had agreed by email to meet in the Reference Section, since it was on the top floor and hardly anyone ever went up there. Kiyoshi wondered if Ryunosuke was truly so embarrassed about his grades that he had to pick such a remote location.

"Well…if he couldn't even pass…the entrance exams," Kiyoshi huffed to himself as he trudged up the stairs, "then I guess…it makes sense…that he'd be…embarrassed." The stairs were proving to be difficult. Not only did Kiyoshi rarely get this much physical activity, but he was also carrying a heavy backpack and two extra textbooks under his arm. His legs were starting to ache as he made it to the fourth flight. He said, "If I were…a basketball…if I were…a basketball…person…" He couldn't even find the breath to finish his sentence.

Panting and sweaty, Kiyoshi stumbled onto the fifth floor. He wished he wasn't so out of shape. It was a little embarrassing that the stairs had just given him a full workout. Hoisting his strap further up onto his shoulder, he hurried down the stacks of books, the numbers flashing by and his panic increasing with each step.

"It should be…right about…here." Kiyoshi froze in his tracks. "Oh!"

Behind all those stacks, nestled in a corner and situated just below a large window, were a study table and two chairs. And an incredibly tall, broad-shouldered person was slouched down in one of them, while his feet were propped up on the other. The hood of his sweatshirt was pulled down over his head, partially obscuring his face, and his arms were crossed in front of his chest. He was sound asleep. A black gym bag sat on the floor next to his chair.

Kiyoshi could only gape at him. Was this guy even Japanese? He was huge. Kiyoshi was positive that this must be Ryunosuke, as much as he wished it weren't. Surely someone like this would only show contempt for Kiyoshi, and he might even try to bully Kiyoshi into doing his homework for him. Kiyoshi had had to deal with a few situations like that in high school. He'd only been lucky enough to not get beaten up.

_Maybe he chose this spot so no one would hear me scream,_ Kiyoshi thought wildly. He checked his watch. It was exactly four o'clock, which was the time they'd agreed to meet. Which meant that Kiyoshi was going to have to wake him up. He gulped, crossed his chest for good measure, sent a quick prayer to God for extra measure, and then walked up and set his bag down gently on the table.

He glanced at Ryonosuke. The noise hadn't woken him up. Kiyoshi cleared his throat hesitantly and asked, "Um, excuse me…are you….Ryunosuke Mitsubishi?"

A twitch. Then, the cloaked head raised slightly. His question was low, deep, and menacing:

"You're my tutor?"

"Um, yes, I am." He shivered. This guy could probably snap his arms like a stick of Pocky.

Slowly, the giant demon basketball player removed his legs from the opposite chair, sat up a little straighter, and uncrossed his arms. "Well…" He reached up with one hand and pushed back his hood. He stared up at Kiyoshi. "Then sit down already."

He looked like someone who worked for a host club. Put simply, he was much better looking than Kiyoshi had expected. His light brown hair was razor cut, short enough not to get in the way, but long enough for someone to run their fingers through. His eyes were dark and deep. He was staring at Kiyoshi with such anger and intensity that Kiyoshi felt like he was going to be incinerated.

"R-right, thanks," Kiyoshi said, hurrying to obey him. He was amazed that he'd never seen him around school before. He definitely would have stood out in a crowd. "Umm, well, I guess you already know my name is Kiyoshi Tsuzuki…but, um, if it makes you uncomfortable, you can call me by my first or last name, it doesn't matter."

"Hmm." Ryunosuke continued to glare at him. Kiyoshi wondered why he felt the need to examine him so thoroughly – surely with one glance he could see that Kiyoshi was no match for him physically? It seemed that Ryonsuke was a very defensive sort of person. Maybe because Kiyoshi was technically the authority in the situation, he felt that he had to be on his guard. Well, Kiyoshi didn't plan on forcing this guy to do anything – he felt like living a few more years.

"Um, so should I call you by anything in particular?" he asked hesitantly. Ryunosuke finally looked away from Kiyoshi, fixing his gaze on something outside that Kiyoshi couldn't see.

"Ryo." It was a shortened version of his name. Kiyoshi took it as an affirmative.

"Right, well, then, Ryo, I'm supposed to be tutoring you in Japanese and English," Kiyoshi said as he began to open his bag. "I think if I remember, you're in the one hundred level class-"

"Forget it."

"Huh?" Kiyoshi stopped abruptly. Ryo's expression was dark and fierce.

"This is a waste of time," he said simply. Kiyoshi gulped, and tried his best to smile encouragingly.

"But it's important that you get good grades – and once you get the basics, I think you'll find it's pretty easy-"

"There's nothing you can do. I've never been able to learn anything." Ryo spoke as if it were the Word of God. "I was born stupid. No amount of extra lessons is going to change that." He leaned back in his chair so that it stood up on two legs. Kiyoshi hoped desperately that it wouldn't break.

"But I'm sure that's not true." Kiyoshi said, knowing he must sound annoyingly persistent. "I'm sure you're really good at something."

"Basketball. That's what I'm good at." Ryo met Kiyoshi with those dark eyes again. "I'm only meeting with you because I have to. You don't have to try to teach me anything."

Something was wrong with this. Why would someone as strong and talented as Ryo have such low confidence? It was one thing to know that he was behind and he didn't understand some of the more advanced things…but Ryo was claiming that he'd been stupid from birth. Had someone told him he was stupid? Who had allowed this belief to continue on until college age? Why had nobody in elementary, middle, or high school ever held him back for his grades? Why hadn't someone helped him from the beginning?

Unexplainably, Kiyoshi felt himself becoming angry on Ryo's behalf. What kind of parent would perpetuate such a falsehood? Ryo was convinced that he couldn't be taught at all – that just couldn't be true. People had to learn in order to grow. It didn't make any sense.

"What is it?"

Kiyoshi jumped out of his skin as Ryo addressed him. "Are you mad because this is a waste of your time? Are you late for a meeting with your research group?"

Kiyoshi flushed, wondering if it was an insult. And was it so obvious just from looking that Kiyoshi was part of a research group? Well, he did fit the profile of an academic type to a T. The glasses, the perpetually messy hair, the sweaters and always carrying out a mountain of books – anyone would guess that he was a nuclear scientist in the making. Or maybe a future surgeon, or at least a literature professor.

Kiyoshi still wasn't sure himself. But he did want to make sure he corrected Ryo on this matter – he couldn't stand listening to this false belief anymore, and he didn't want Ryo to think for a second that Kiyoshi agreed with it. Even if it made Ryo mad, Kiyoshi's indignation made him braver than usual. He found himself grabbing the table with both hands, and speaking in a slightly louder, higher voice than usual.

"That's not it. I don't think this is a waste of time."

Ryo blinked. Clearly the news had come to him as a surprise.

"Even if you don't think you can learn anything," Kiyoshi said, "even if someone has told you before that you can't – I don't think that's true at all. I think that you can do it. It's amazing that you're such a great basketball player, and I really," Kiyoshi's voice wavered for a second as he felt the emotion of his speech, "_really_ admire you a lot for that, and I think a lot of other people do too."

Ryo's lips parted slightly as he stared, open-mouthed with disbelief, at Kiyoshi's determined face.

"So…I don't believe that you're stupid at all. I think you can learn anything. Maybe," he added with a nervous laugh, "Maybe even with some effort I could learn to play basketball, if that says anything!"

Kiyoshi finally finished, and noticed the dramatic change in Ryo's face. The perpetual scowl had vanished – his clean, unlined awe made Kiyoshi's knees tremble slightly. Really, he was a very attractive person. But Kiyoshi wasn't even going to let his thoughts go down that road – someone as talented and attractive as Ryo must already have a girlfriend.

"Hmm." Ryo crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair again. He was examining Kiyoshi with far less hostility now.

"You could be a good player."

Kiyoshi started. "Huh?"

"Your size could be an advantage." Ryo's deep voice washed over Kiyoshi like ocean waves. "And you've got a good, slender frame. Long fingers. Nice legs too, really tapered and supple."

Instantly, Kiyoshi face lit up like a traffic light. How could Ryo tell anything about his legs when he was wearing pants? More importantly, how could descriptions such as "good", "tapered" and "supple" apply to any part of Kiyoshi's body?

"Um, well, anyway," Kiyoshi stammered, thankfully taking Ryo's attention away from his legs, "I really think if we work hard we can make a lot of progress. So um, don't worry about what level you're at right now. We're not in any hurry."

With a thump, Ryo let the legs of his chair fall back on the floor again. His face had darkened slightly at the return of his least favorite topic, but at least he didn't look like he was angry with Kiyoshi anymore.

"You can try," Ryo finally said. "But if we do this and you can't help me, then I'm quitting for good and sticking with basketball."

Kiyoshi blanched and tried to protest. "Hey, don't you think that's a little extreme?"

"Hmph." Without a word, Ryo stood up from his seat. Kiyoshi couldn't hold back a gasp. Ryo was positively fear-inducing, tall and broad-shouldered, with long, muscular legs. Kiyoshi was sure he had no problem making baskets on the court with his stature. In fact, he could probably stuff Kiyoshi through a hoop if he pissed him off too much.

"I didn't bring my stuff today," Ryo informed him. Kiyoshi watched as he picked up his bag. "Is this a good place to meet tomorrow? Or do you want it to be somewhere else?"

Kiyoshi was surprised that Ryo was even consider Kiyoshi's preference. He smiled and said, "Right here is fine! So I'll see you at four o' clock tomorrow, and we'll start with your Japanese."

Ryo grunted noncommittally, and began to walk away. Kiyoshi just barely caught a glimpse of his profile from the back, and in that instant, realized that he had seen him before.

"Oh!"

Ryo paused. "What is it?" he asked over his shoulder. Kiyoshi flushed with embarrassment.

"Oh, it's nothing. It's just that, I actually remember seeing you somewhere else." In fact, Kiyoshi had seen him just a few days ago. "We ride the same train together in the morning sometimes. I didn't recognize you because I've only ever seen your back, and usually you're dressed up really nice. I always thought you were a business man and you worked for some expensive corporation!"

It was exciting to finally recognize him, but Ryo seemed more interested in Kiyoshi himself than the fact that they rode the same train. He was watching his expression with what might have been amusement. Kiyoshi wasn't sure – Ryo wasn't exactly smiling, but he wasn't scowling either. Whatever he was feeling, he was good at disguising it. The attention made Kiyoshi uncomfortable again, and his stomach fluttered.

"What time do you usually get to the station?" Ryo asked.

"Uh, around seven-thirty, if I'm on time," Kiyoshi said. "Why?"

Ryo was already turning to walk away. "I'll buy you coffee sometime." He disappeared among the stacks.

Kiyoshi felt like he'd been shot in the chest. His mind took off on a rampage.

_Calm down, I sure he doesn't mean anything by it. It's just a coincidence that we ride the same train. Besides, he's got to be dating somebody already, right? Don't even think about it. This isn't one of your BL novels. _

Yes. He couldn't afford to think that way. He couldn't entertain ideas that were unrealistic. Ryo was out of his league, in any case, and had no reason to be interested in Kiyoshi for anything other than tutoring. Sighing, Kiyoshi stuffed his books back into his bag, and after checking his watch, headed out for his next meeting. His research group was conducting an experiment, and he couldn't afford to be distracted by a fantasy.

**As always, reviews are much appreciated. Thanks for reading!**

***~Suki~***


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